Moments

A simply beautiful 4 minute film by Will Hoffman, which comes to us via Radiolab. Having heard a Radiolab series on moments of death, he gives us moments of life. Within seconds I realized it had to be watched in full screen rather than just in the relatively tiny space of a youtube box, so expand the picture when you watch it. And, seriously, watch it. I never in my life thought I would have occasion or inclination to tag something with the utter cheesy descriptor of “inspirational” (and be sincere!) but here I am doing it. Along with using a whole bunch of other cheesy tags likely never to appear on this blog again!

The next time a believer asks why an atheist doesn’t commit suicide if it’s all pointless in the end I’ll just direct them to this film. Those moments are why I keep living. Because the move from one moment to the next is interesting and terrible and wonderful and sublime all at the same time. What more could you ask for?

Dr. Daniel Fincke has his PhD in philosophy from Fordham University and spent 11 years teaching in college classrooms. He wrote his dissertation on Ethics and the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. On Camels With Hammers, the careful philosophy blog he writes for a popular audience, Dan argues for atheism and develops a humanistic ethical theory he calls “Empowerment Ethics”. Dan also teaches affordable, non-matriculated, video-conferencing philosophy classes on ethics, Nietzsche, historical philosophy, and philosophy for atheists that anyone around the world can sign up for. (You can learn more about Dan’s online classes here.) Dan is an APPA (American Philosophical Practitioners Association) certified philosophical counselor who offers philosophical advice services to help people work through the philosophical aspects of their practical problems or to work out their views on philosophical issues. (You can read examples of Dan’s advice here.) Through his blogging, his online teaching, and his philosophical advice services each, Dan specializes in helping people who have recently left a religious tradition work out their constructive answers to questions of ethics, metaphysics, the meaning of life, etc. as part of their process of radical worldview change.

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